´óÏó´«Ã½

I worked in the Mill, and I joined the Army in July 1941, until July ‘45, so I did 4 years. I was up in Glasgow 2 year, Newcastle 12 month and London 12 month. I only fire-watched at beginning o’ t’war, when I were 19. I worked at the Walk Mill, [Keighley] but we all had to fire-watch after work, but not every night -- we did it in turns. We had a bit of fun between ourselves.
My life changed completely when I joined the Army, ‘cos I met my husband. It were a wonderful 4 years what I spent, I could never complain -- the most wonderful years of my life, really.
I enjoyed meself in t’Mill, it were loads of fun, I were never miserable at me work.

The blackouts were terrible. I didn’t really know much about rationing: I lived with me Mother and Dad and me Mother did all t’shopping — I didn’t have owt like that to do. When I were 21, the girls I worked with gave me a party at one of their houses, and one of them turned out to be the Mayoress of Keighley in later years, Evelyn and Bob Waterhouse. We didn’t have many parties, for birthdays or owt like that, in them days.
It wasn’t as dangerous in them days as it is now: you could walk about and nobody would ever stop you.
I came home on leave, and I lived up Woodhouse. We got into Keighley about half-past-one, two o’clock in t’morning, but Fire Station used to be at the bottom of Park Lane in them days: I called in there and they took me home — I were on my own, and they saw I got home alright.
Me Mother worked at Haggas’s Mill at Ingrow, up Ingrow Lane, and me Dad worked at Prince Smith’s — he were a moulder. Me Dad went in the Army — he got a job as a storeman in the Territorials, down Lawkholme Lane. He had to put a uniform on — he had to sign, and then he got called up when it were t’war — and he went down to Plymouth, he were down there for about 12 month and he kitted out them back from Dunkirk. Then he got out — they didn’t keep him in. He were an old soldier in t’First World War — he’d got all the medals.
In the Army I were a telephonist in a Command Post on a gun site: there were guns, predictors, height-finders and spotters, and we were downstairs in t’Command Post.
I didn’t stop in the Army when the war ended because I’d got married then. I met my husband in 1941, he were a Londoner, I got engaged in ’42 and married in ’43 at Keighley parish church. I had a white wedding with a dress from a shop in Keighley. I had to pay for it with coupons, but luckily enough my Mother lived next door to a woman that had seven kiddies, and she used to help her out with coupons. We had the reception at the Co-op on Hanover Street. We didn’t have a honeymoon, because we were on leave — I got three weeks, but he only got a week.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.